Method and system for supplying amino acids or chemical derivatives in liquid form to ruminant livestock

ABSTRACT

A method and system for supplying amino acids or chemical derivatives in liquid form to ruminant livestock is described. The method includes supplying a liquid, supplying at least one amino acid, producing a liquid mixture by mixing the liquid with the amino acid, and administering the liquid mixture to ruminant livestock in a controlled manner. The system of the present invention may include a fluid supply line ( 2 ), a one one-way valve ( 1 ) connected to the line ( 2 ), a measurement device ( 3 ) connected to the line ( 2 ) downstream from the one-way valve ( 1 ), a pump ( 5 ) for injecting amino acids into the fluid system, and containers ( 9, 9 ′) for retaining the amino acids which are drawn up by appropriate devices ( 11, 11 ′) and are introduced into the flow of liquid towards drinking troughs ( 7 ).

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to Italian Patent Application No. 2000A 000785, filed on Aug. 8, 2000.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates to a procedure and a system for supplying aminoacids or chemical derivatives in liquid form to ruminant livestock.

2. Related Art

For years now, amino acids, the basic components of proteins, haverepresented the most economical and efficient means for adapting theprotein composition of the diets of animals bred for productive purposesto the increasing needs dictated by genetic improvement and thequalitative demands of the market for products of animal origin.

Consequently, amino acids, particularly lysine, methionine, threonineand tryptophan, are commonly added to fodder, in variable amountsaccording to the amino acid composition of the base feed and of therequired nutritional objectives.

Amino acids of industrial origin come from chemical synthesis orfermentation processes, and are available to the animal feed industryeither in powder or liquid form, chemically formulated either asnatural-like amino acids or as various chemical derivatives, which arethen metabolized by the animal in biologically active amino acids.

The ruminant species (especially bovines, and to a lesser degree sheep,goats and buffalo) cannot, however, benefit from these additions totheir diet, which they need from a nutritional point of view, becausethe rumen, acting as a biological fermentor, transforms the amino acidsadded to the fodder, using them as components in culture material forthe bacterial and protozoan populations which are its naturalinhabitants.

In order to solve the problem of the ruminal degradability of the aminoacids added to the fodder, the industry has proposed several forms ofamino acid “rumen protection,” which are able to make themnon-assailable by the bacterial flora of the rumen but at the same timebioavailable (that is, absorbable by the animal) in the part of thedigestive system responsible for absorbing nutrients (the intestine).These technologies range from simply covering the amino acids with lipidfilms with a high melting point to sophisticated techniques of thepharmaceutical type which provide for including amino acids inmicropellets covered with pH-sensitive polymers or rumen-resistantcellulose, as well as other means. Generally speaking, either thetechniques are relatively economical but not very efficient, such aslipid films which provide approximately 10-40% protection against therumen, or are fairly efficient but costly in proportion to the value ofthe protected product, such as micropellets which provide approximately60-90% protection against the rumen but the cost of the technology isoften greater than the value of the amino acid.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The purpose of this invention is to solve the problem of thecost-benefit relationship in treating the diet of ruminant livestockwith appropriate doses of amino acids by using a specific method ofadministration which allows a degree of ruminal bypass to be achievedusing the most economical form of amino acids available on the market,that is, the liquid form, without subjecting it to any subsequentreworking, but rather supplying it directly to the animals.

Thus, starting from a raw material whose cost is not high, moreconsistent doses may be used, benefitting from the bypassed part as anutritional supplement, the remaining part being metabolized by thebacteria of the rumen to boost their vitality.

In addition, by using these nutritional supplements directly in thehousing structures, their dosage may be adapted by the producer veryrapidly, in terms of the composition of the base portion.

The above and other purposes and advantages of the invention, which willbecome apparent by following the description, are applied to a procedureand a system such as those described. Preferred embodiments andimportant variants of this invention are also presented.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS/FIGURES

The foregoing and other features and advantages of the present inventionwill be apparent from the following, more particular description of apreferred embodiment of the invention, as illustrated in theaccompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of the system of the presentinvention for supplying amino acids in liquid form to ruminantlivestock.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

A preferred embodiment of the present invention is now described. Whilespecific configurations and arrangements are discussed, it should beunderstood that this is done for illustrative purposes only. A personskilled in the relevant art will recognize that other configurations andarrangements can be used without departing from the spirit and scope ofthe invention. It will be apparent to a person skilled in the relevantart that this invention can also be employed in a variety of otherdevices and applications.

One aspect of this invention is a system for administering amino acidsin a liquid mixture to ruminant livestock. The administration is througha liquid such as the animals' drinking water, milk replacers, or liquidfeed after the amino acid is diluted in the liquid. The dilution occursimmediately, since it is a matter of hydrosoluble products, and therelatively low percentage of inclusion in the drinking water or otherliquid necessary for obtaining useful dosages prevents potentialchemical incompatibility problems between the various amino acids, anddoes not affect the palatability of the liquid itself. The percentage ofinclusion of the amino acid in the liquid may be from about 0.01% toabout 10.0%. In a more preferred embodiment, the percentage of inclusionof the amino acid in the liquid may be from about 0.05% to about 0.5%.In a most preferred embodiment, the percentage of inclusion of the aminoacid in the liquid may be from about 0.1% to about 0.3%. In order todilute the liquid amino acids, a relatively simple system is needed, apreferred and non-limiting form of which is illustrated in FIG. 1.

Typical amino acids include alanine, beta-alanine, arginine, asparagine,aspartic acid, camitine, citrulline, cysteine, cystine,gamma-aminobutryic acid, glutamic acid, glutathione, glycine, histidine,hydroxyproline, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine, ornithine,phenylalanine, proline, serine, taurine, threonine, tryptophan, tyrosineand valine. In a preferred embodiment, the supplied amino acid may belysine, methionine, threonine or tryptophan. In a most preferredembodiment, the amino acid to be supplied is lysine or methionine intheir liquid forms.

FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of a preferred embodiment of thepresent invention. The system of FIG. 1 includes a fluid supply line (2)used in breeding livestock and at least one one-way valve (1) connectedto the line (2). The valve (1) prevents the return of amino acids fromthe fluid distribution system. As shown in FIG. 1, the system furtherincludes a measurement device (3), such as a flowmeter or liter-counter,connected to the line (2) downstream from the one-way valve (1). Thesystem also includes at least one pump (5) for injecting the amino acidsinto the fluid system, and is equipped with a gradient for regulatingthe projected flow for the livestock, activated by the measurementdevice (3). Every time the liquid from the system passes through afterit is activated by the animals using one or more drinking troughs (7),it injects a known and anticipated amount of each amino acid in theliquid pipeline. The amino acids are contained in containers such asvats (9, 9′), and are drawn up by appropriate devices (11, 11′) andintroduced into the flow of liquid towards drinking troughs (7).

Ruminants, especially in the bovine species, have an automaticphysiological reflex defined as an “esophageal pipe” which, when itperceives liquids such as drinking water, milk replacers, or liquid feedpassing through the esophagus, partially closes off with a muscle reflexthe access of the liquids themselves to the first stomach (rumen). Thisis accomplished by closing a specific muscle channel, which sends thewater directly to the abomasum (fourth stomach), for all purposessimilar to the monogastric stomach.

This reflex has an almost total efficiency in young animals, because itis provided by nature as a safeguard against suckling milk falling intothe rumen, where it would create anomalous fermentations dangerous tothe life of the young animal. Part of this reflex persists into theadult life of ruminants, even though with a much lower efficiency.

A specific study (Woodford S T, Murphy M R, Davis C L, Holmes K R,“Ruminal Bypass of Drinking Water in Lactating Cows,” J. Dairy Science,October 1984; 67 (10) 2471-2474) has shown that up to 18% of ingestedliquids are able to bypass the rumen in the hours immediately afterfeeding. Based on this principle, the present invention provides forusing liquids as a means of supplying ruminant livestock with aconsiderable amount of amino acids, whether natural-like or chemicalderivatives, in a liquid and therefore especially economical form.

Moreover, the ruminal persistence time of fluids is much shorter(typically less than about 10 hours) with respect to the persistencetime of solid fractions (typically about 15-20 hours). Therefore, eventhe part of the amino acids supplied in a liquid which does not bypassthe rumen through the esophageal pipe reflex has a briefer time ofcontact with the bacterial and protozoan flora of the rumen, introducinga time control factor in the changes resulting from being subjected tomodifications of the fermentative type.

A method for supplying liquid products to ruminant livestock is simpleand efficient. The method first involves calculating the dailyconsumption of liquid by the animals. This calculation may be performedby means of known nutritional formulas (Murphy M R et al., “FactorsAffecting Water Consumption by Holstein Cows in Early Lactation,” J.Dairy Science, 66:35 (1983)) or, when present, by verifying the dataoffered by a measurement device such as a liter-counter found in theequipment. In a preferred embodiment, drinking water may be suppliedfrom about 30 liters/day/head to about 150 liters/day/head. In a morepreferred embodiment, drinking water may be supplied from about 50liters/day/head to about 80 liters/day/head. In a most preferredembodiment, drinking water may be supplied from about 70 liters/day/headto about 80 liters/day/head.

Then, the amount of amino acids whose administration to the animals isdesired is calculated based on bioavailability data. In a preferredembodiment, the amount of amino acid to be supplied to each animal maybe from about 10 grams to about 500 grams. In a more preferredembodiment, the amount of amino acid to be supplied to each animal maybe from about 30 grams to about 300 grams. In a most preferredembodiment, the amount of amino acid to be supplied to each animal maybe from about 35 grams to about 200 grams.

Next, the percentage of inclusion of each amino acid per liter of liquidis calculated, based on the amino acid concentration found in thecommercial product whose use is intended. In a preferred embodiment, thepercentage of inclusion of each amino acid per liter of liquid isbetween about 0.01% to about 10.0%. In a more preferred embodiment, thepercentage of inclusion of the amino acid in the liquid may be fromabout 0.05% to about 0.5%. In a most preferred embodiment, thepercentage of inclusion of the amino acid in the liquid may be fromabout 0.1% to about 0.3%.

Finally, the method includes titering the system by means of gradientsinstalled on every individual pump. An example of this method isprovided in Example 2.

Supplementing the diet of ruminants, especially bovines, with highlevels of amino acids, particularly lysine and methionine, allowsspecific productive results to be obtained. For example, supplementationin dairy cattle or brood cows increases both the liters of milk producedper day and the protein content in the milk produced. This also improvesthe overall health of the animals as a result of a better balancedfeeding by producing a reduction in ketosis, lowering of somatic cells,providing better immune status, and more efficient reproductiveperformances. Supplementing the diet of buffalo, sheep and/or goats withhigh levels of amino acids produces the same advantages as stated abovefor bovines.

Supplementation in beef cattle increases production quantitatively,measured by grams of increased weight per day, and by improving thequality of the carcass through the percentage of total lean cuts and thecorporal development of the commercially valuable parts. This alsoimproves the health condition of the beef cattle as a result of a betterbalanced feeding, resulting in a better health response in the phase andlower incidence of disease during the breeding cycle.

While the invention has been particularly shown and described withreference to preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood bythose skilled in the art that they have been presented by way of exampleonly, and not limitation, and various changes in form and details can bemade therein without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention. Thus, the breadth and scope of the present invention shouldnot be limited by any of the above-described exemplary embodiments, butshould be defined only in accordance with the following claims and theirequivalents. Additionally, all references cited herein, includingjournal articles or abstracts, published or corresponding U.S. orforeign patent applications, issued U.S. or foreign patents, or anyother references, are each entirely incorporated by reference herein,including all data, tables, figures, and text presented in the citedreferences.

The foregoing description of the specific embodiments will so fullyreveal the general nature of the invention that others can, by applyingknowledge within the skill of the art (including the contents of thereferences cited herein), readily modify and/or adapt for variousapplications such specific embodiments, without undue experimentation,without departing from the general concept of the present invention.Therefore, such adaptations and modifications are intended to be withinthe meaning and range of equivalents of the disclosed embodiments, basedon the teaching and guidance presented herein. It is to be understoodthat the phraseology or terminology herein is for the purpose ofdescription and not of limitation, such that the terminology orphraseology of the present specification is to be interpreted by theskilled artisan in light of the teachings and guidance presented herein,in combination with the knowledge of one of ordinary skill in the art.

EXAMPLE 1

The following study, performed using liquid lysine supplied in a 60-gramamino acid dose in a liquid drench to two bovines, gave the followingresponse curves in the plasma level of the lysine, which is an index ofits absorption by the animals, and illustrates that the esophagealmuscle reflex is active: Sampling Time Cow 1, plasma lysine Cow 2,plasma lysine (minutes) (mg/100 ml) (mg/100 ml)  0 1 1.073  80 1.131.079 160 1.243 1.365 240 1.613 2.245 360 1.727 2.422 420 1.75 2.415 1481.97 1.999 540 1.928 1.700 600 1.54 1.422  24 hours 1.44 1.200

EXAMPLE 2

The following is an example of a calculation for supplying the properamount of liquid products to ruminant livestock. This calculation can beeasily executed by special, simple computerized support, which may befurnished as a complement to the system of the invention.

-   -   Mean amino acid bioavailability: 20%    -   Mean bovine water consumption: 62.5 L/head/day    -   Nutritional lysine requirements: 20 g/head/day    -   Nutritional methionine requirements: 7 g/head/day    -   Commercial liquid lysine: 50% amino acid titer

Commercial liquid methionine: 88% hydroxy analog amino acid titer LysineMethionine Liters of H₂O drunk/cow/day 62.5 62.5 Bioavailable amino acidrequirement 20 grams  7 g Grams to be supplied based on 20% 100 g 35 gbioavailability (k = 5) Grams to be supplied based on commercial 200 g(50%) 40 g (88%) product concentration (x) Grams of amino acid requiredper liter of  3.2  0.64 water (x:62.5) Percentage to be titered on theequipment 0.32% 0.064% mark

EXAMPLE 3

In this example, 24 milking Holstein cows (8 primiparous and 16multiparous) were used (Table 1). Animals were allotted to fourtreatment groups (6 animals each group) in a Latin square design andtreated according to Table 2.

Each period of the Latin square had an adjustment period of 7 days (basediet) and a treatment period of 14 days (base diet plus amino acidsupplementation for treatments T2, T3 and T4). Liquid amino acids weredosed into the drinking water (treatment T3) using individual volumetricpumps to avoid mixing of undiluted products. Tables 3-7 report the basediet and feed composition.

Blood and milk samples were collected during the adjustment andexperimental periods according to Table 8. Blood samples were collectedbefore morning meal, then centrifuged and plasma was collected forlysine and methionine determination. Milk samples were collected in twoconsecutive milkings from all cows using a lactometer, refrigerated at4° C. and analyzed for fat, protein and lactose content. The data wasanalyzed by a General Linear Model (“GLM”) procedure using the valuesfrom the first adjustment period as a covariate.

Table 9 reports the average water consumption of animals beingsupplemented liquid amino acids within the drinking water by week.

The following products were used:

-   -   SMARTAMINE™ ML: rumen protected amino acid with a pH dependent        co-polymer (vinil-2-piridin-stirene) (available from Rhone        Poulenc Animal Nutrition, Atlanta, Ga.)    -   39% Lysine+15% Methionine,    -   Bioavailability: 90%    -   Protection: 90% into water solution, pH 6, 40° C., 24 hours.    -   RHODIMET™ AT 88 (Rhone Poulenc): liquid methionine hydroxy        analogue (pH: 1)    -   DL-2-idroxy-4-methyltiobutanoic acid.    -   [CH₃—S—CH₂—CH₂—CH(OH)—COOH]    -   Methionine hydroxy analogue: 88%    -   ADM liquid Lysine, L-Lysine (ADM Bioproducts, Germany)    -   Lysine: 50%

Ph: 9.5-10.5 fd TABLE 1 Animal used in the lactating Holstein cowsexperiment Box Tag Days in Milk Milk, kg 1 256 36 32 1 265 91 31 1 482206 21 1 459 221 32 1 42 229 23 1 782 323 24 2 284 43 34 2 233 68 25 2 1121 31 2 220 220 27 2 244 298 22 2 120 328 28 3 257 61 30 3 3 81 28 3179 108 35 3 224 224 31 3 54 273 24 3 508 368 19 4 272 67 29 4 421 89 314 491 94 35 4 95 225 19 4 241 243 24 4 29 356 26

TABLE 2 Treatments T1 - Control Base diet with no amino acid additionT2 - Product mixed within the Base diet + 68 g/head/day Smartamine totalmixed ratio ML (26 g Lysine; 10.2 g Methionine) T3 - Liquid productadded to the 200 g/head/day ADM liquid lysine + drinking water 35g/head/day Rhodimet T4 - Liquid amino acids sprayed 200 g/head/day ADMliquid lysine + on top of the total mixed ratio 35 g/head/day Rhodimet

TABLE 3 Diet composition (as fed) Feed Kg/head/day Corn Silage 22Alfalfa hay dehydrate 3.5 Grass hay 2 Concentrate 9.5 Energy mix (cornmeal 70%, 1.5 barley meal 30%)

TABLE 4 Chemical composition of the total mixed ratio (% on dry matterbasis) Parameters Value Dry matter, Kg 21.7 Crude protein, % 15.72 NE₁,Mcal/kg 1.63 Starch and sugars, % 26.5 NDF (neutral detergent fiber)35.5 ADF (acid detergent fiber) 21.5Forage/Concentrate ratio: 45/55

TABLE 5 Chemical composition of feeds Parameter Corn silage Alfalfa hay,dehydrate Grass hay Dry matter 28 90 87 Crude protein 9.5 17.4 13Soluble protein, % CP 55 40 35 Lipids 3.42 0.87 1.7 NDF 47.5 44 63.5 ADF28 27 46 Starch 23.5 — — Sugars — 2.5 1.5

TABLE 6 Concentrate feed composition Component % on dry matter basisMineral and vitamin 0.32 Megalac 2.68 CaCO₃ 1.13 Sunflower meal, solventextracted 7.26 Soybean meal, solvent extracted 12.40 Corn meal (10% cornflakes) 18.03 Barley meal 16.28 Potato protein concentrate 4.06 Beetpulps, dry 11.79 Molasses 1.69 Wheat bran 12.89 Corn gluten feed 8.20NaHCO₃ 0.56 NaCL 0.34 CaHPO₄ 1.58 MgO 0.79

TABLE 7 Chemical composition of concentrate Parameter % on dry matterbasis Dry matter, kg 88.74 UFL 1.05 Crude protein 21.94 Crude fiber 8.68NDF 24.80 Lipids 5.10 UIP 8.93 Soluble protein 5.48 NSC 38.30 Starch28.27 Starch + sugar 33.63 PDIE 14.07 PDIN 15.58 P 0.88 C 1.46

TABLE 8 Days of blood and milk samples collection Blood Milk Blood Milk7 6 3 6 7 14 7 13 14

TABLE 9 Water consumption (liter/day) Amino acid in Period (by week)(Liter/head/day) drinking water 3 78.0 No 2 75.0 Yes 3 76.0 Yes 4 75.0No 5 78.0 Yes 6 65.3 Yes 7 64.3 No 8 59.0 Yes 9 65.8 Yes 10 62.7 No 1165.2 Yes 12 60.4 Yes

TABLE 10 Plasma lysine concentration (mg/100 ml) at day 0, 3 and 14 DayT1 T2 T3 T4 0 0.947 0.935 0.948 0.969 3 1.001 1.343 1.126 1.224 14 0.9161.232 1.080 1.239

TABLE 11 Plasma methionine concentration (mg/100 ml) at day 0, 3 and 14Day T1 T2 T3 T4 0 0.255 0.272 0.271 0.259 3 0.323 0.417 0.302 0.325 140.264 0.376 0.312 0.352

TABLE 12 Production data, first week of the Latin square experimentaltrial Parameter T1 T2 T3 T4 Milk, kg 29.2 2.97 28.9 28.9 4% fatcorrected milk, kg 25.8 26.5 27.1 26.1 Fat, kg 0.93 0.97 1.05 0.98Protein, kg 0.97 0.99 0.96 0.98 Lactose, kg 1.56 1.58 1.52 1.51 Fat, %3.17 3.37 3.69 3.42 Protein, % 3.37 3.36 3.36 3.41 Lactose, % 5.32 5.295.24 5.22

TABLE 13 Production data, second week of the Latin square experimentaltrial Parameter T1 T2 T3 T4 Milk, kg 29.0 29.2 28.7 29.2 4% fatcorrected milk, kg 26.6 26.1 27.0 28.1 Fat, kg 0.99 0.96 1.04 1.10Protein, kg 0.97 0.97 0.94 1.02 Lactose, kg 1.54 1.55 1.49 1.54 Fat, %3.43 3.51 3.85 3.84 Protein, % 3.38 3.40 3.37 3.50 Lactose, % 5.29 5.305.16 5.24

1. A process for supplying amino acids or their chemical derivatives inliquid form to ruminant livestock, the process comprising: supplying aliquid; supplying at least one amino acid; producing a liquid mixture bymixing said liquid with said at least one amino acid; and administeringsaid liquid mixture to ruminant livestock in a controlled manner.
 2. Theprocess according to claim 1, wherein said step of supplying a liquidfurther comprises supplying a liquid selected from the group consistingof drinking water, milk replacers and liquid feed.
 3. The processaccording to claim 1, wherein said at least one amino acid is selectedfrom the group consisting of lysine, methionine, threonine andtryptophan.
 4. The process according to claim 1, wherein said at leastone amino acid is supplied in liquid form.
 5. The process according toclaim 4, wherein said at least one liquid amino acid is selected fromthe group consisting of lysine and methionine.
 6. The process accordingto claim 1, wherein said step of producing a mixture further comprisesmixing said at least one amino acid in a dosage ranging from about 0.05%to about 0.5% based on the liquid supplied.
 7. The process according toclaim 1, wherein said step of administering said mixture furthercomprises the following steps: calculating the daily liquid consumptionof the ruminant livestock; calculating the amount of amino acid to besupplied to the ruminant livestock; calculating the percentage ofinclusion of each amino acid per liter of liquid based on the amino acidconcentration; and titering the system of administration.
 8. The processaccording to claim 7, wherein said daily liquid consumption calculationphase is performed using nutritional formulas.
 9. The process accordingto claim 7, wherein said daily liquid consumption calculation phase isperformed using a measurement device.
 10. The process according to claim9, wherein said measurement device is selected from the group consistingof a flow meter and a liter-counter. 11-22. (canceled)
 23. The processaccording to claim 11, further comprising the steps of performing andcontrolling the phase of administering the liquid mixture.